The Five Times Katara Wanted Zuko and the Time She Got Him
by NonsensicalLyrics
Summary: "Katara wasn't nearly as innocent as she had been the last time they met and she had come to a decision: She was definitely going to sleep with Prince Zuko before the month was over." au, Zutara, hard T - UPDATED to add a second try at the prompt, rating upped to M
1. Chapter 1

a/n: This was originally written to go with a different title that I had come up with as a joke, but it ended up way less crackier than I intended, so I'll have to try it again. I still had fun writing and hope you have fun reading!

Cross posted on my tumblr.

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i.

The last time Katara saw the Fire Lord's nephew they had both been quite a bit younger.

It was at the four week long Conference of Nations held every five years when the various leaders of the nations and major subregions of the world, or a designated representative, would gather to discuss treaties and trade and air any grievances. It was a tradition instated a hundred years prior by the now ancient Avatar Aang to prevent another such near-crisis as occurred in his youth, when an overambitious Fire Lord nearly sent the world into chaos.

It was the first time eight-year-old Katara and nine-year-old Sokka were allowed to accompany their father on one of his diplomatic trips while their mother stayed home to act as proxy ruler, though Chief Hakoda insisted that it very boring and they would be begging to go home again after two days. But Omashu, the chosen location for that year's meeting, sounded so exotic and exciting they were sure he was wrong.

As luck would have it the Fire Nation representative, the Fire Lord's younger brother Ozai, was accompanied by not just his wife but his children as well, a boy and girl right around Sokka and Katara's ages. And, though the boy could be a little mopy at times and the girl a little scary, they made quick friends as young children thrown together in a sea of adults do and spent the month as thick as thieves before quickly forgetting about one another for the most part once they'd gone back to their respective homes.

They had been so young and innocent.

Well, they were still quite young, really – at fifteen and sixteen she and her brother were now considered mature enough to go on diplomatic missions on their own. Not ones that were really truly important, just events that required a token appearance to pay respect, like the Fire Lord's sixtieth birthday - and though she couldn't speak for Prince Zuko she was for her part still fairly innocent all things considered.

But, Katara thought, cheeks reddening as she peeked out the window onto the training yard where the now seventeen and very shirtless prince was going through forms with his dao blades, she wasn't so young.

And she wasn't so innocent.

ii.

Prince Zuko was a surprisingly good dancer, Katara silently noted as the young man lead her in a new style of dance imported from a northern Earth Kingdom province called the _waltz_. He was bit stiff, as he nearly always was, save for rare moments such as that morning when she spied him as he trained, but his steps were light and his hand on her back warm and steady. Katara for her part held her own admirably, breathlessly keeping pace as they turned – almost like flying.

"I think your Uncle's talking about you," she observed. She was trying very hard to keep her left hand where it rested on his shoulder rather than giving into the urge to let it slide down to his bicep and feel those muscles she had watched flexing in the morning sun. As it was she couldn't resist adjusting her grip as a pretense to slide her fingers over the smooth silk covering her partner's powerful shoulders as he turned his head to see Princess Ursa smile knowingly as the Fire Lord leaned forward as if to share a secret.

Th waterbender trained her expression into one of complete innocence as Zuko turned back with a grimace.

"He's probably talking about both of us."

Katara's eyebrows shot up.

"Oh?" she said lightly as she looked past him to catch sight of Princess Ursa saying something back to the Fire Lord while nodding her head towards the couple. "What makes you think that?"

She couldn't resist the smirk that tugged at her lips as Zuko flushed and muttered what sounded like 'nothing'. She watched his eyes search the room for a different topic of conversation before they lighted on something behind her.

"Your brother seems to be enjoying himself." He then deftly turned them so she was facing the banquet table where Sokka was going back and forth between putting food on his plate and stuffing it in his mouth. Katara laughed, extracting a small smile from the prince which sent something fluttering to her chest and something warm to her stomach. She suddenly understood why girls would sometimes laugh at a boy's unfunny jokes.

"Do you remember when we were all kids in Omashu and we rode the postal chutes?" she asked.

Zuko groaned, but his smile grew. (More fluttering, more heat).

"Yes – our father was furious with us. Well, me mostly, since I was oldest and was supposed to set a good example ."

"Ours was, too. But Avatar Aang managed to cool them off a little."

"It was only fair," he grumbled, "He was the one who convinced us to do it in the first place."

Katara laughed again at the memory, and to her surprise (and pleasure) Zuko laughed as well. It was quiet and a little shy but also painfully cute, and she found herself flushing and pulling a little closer as they came out of another turn.

iii.

Katara didn't see him again until the next Council of Nations three years later, this time held in Ba Sing Se. She was accompanying and advising her brother as representative in his first diplomatic trip as the official next-in-line to be chief. Zuko was accompanying his older cousin Lu Ten for similar reasons, officially, lthough the heir's real reason for insisting on Zuko's presence had more to do with wanting to get the twenty-year-old away from the training yard to meet some girls.

Katara greeted him with a polite smile and a warm handshake . She was older now, and quite less innocent than the last time they met, but she still felt her heart flutter at the memory of the (disappointingly) chaste kiss he had sweetly placed on the back of her hand as he bid her goodnight the last time their hands had met.

Three days in the two young benders found themselves alone.

In Katara's suite.

Things were getting pretty heated.

"'Love Amongst the Dragons' is a _masterpiece_ – if you think it's awful you obviously have no taste!" Katara huffed, arms crossed and eyes narrowed. It had started so well – they had been catching up over tea (at Lu Ten's suggestion) when they stumbled onto the topic of theater. The Fire Lord would not unoften invite the most prestigious companies to court while Katara was always eager to catch a show at the whatever playhouse was in the area whenever she was out of the South Pole. She'd – _oh so innocently – _invited him to her suite so she could show him a signed script she'd gotten the last time she'd seen a show in the Fire Nation.

"I'm not saying that," he said evenly, obviously trying to be the calm and reasonable one. "I'm sure it's a fine play when done by a competent company, but the Ember Island Players aren't competent – they butcher everything."

This was the wrong thing to say .

"How can you say that?" she screeched as if personally insulted. She had only seen them once, but the ingenue's final monologue had moved her to such tears that she could barely see the rest of the ending through them.

"Because it's true," Zuko retorted.

Katara turned away from him with her nose in the air.

"You probably just caught them on a bad night, and now, typical aristocrat, you're prejudiced against them forever."

Zuko made a strangle noise at that comment and stalked around her so he was facing her again.

"I've been being dragged to see them every year since I was five," he said, his eyebrows pull down and together in a v. "I think I've seen them enough times to be a proper judge, aristocrat or not."

She stepped forward so there was less than a foot of space between them and she was close enough to see the flecks of gold in his eyes and the half healed nick on his jaw from where he must have cut himself shaving. Spirits he was gorgeous - he was perhaps even more attractive when he was scowling than when he was laughing.

"Maybe you should just leave the public theater to us commoners since it's obviously too base for someone of you station," she said coolly despite the flush spreading over her body as she brought her face even closer to his. She should be ashamed of herself for purposely saying things that she knew would make him angry, but she couldn't stop herself.

As expected his eyes narrowed.

"Stop putting words in my mouth," he growled dangerously. They were nearly nose to nose now.

_There are a lot of other things I'd rather be putting in your mouth_, she thought wickedly.

She was just on the verge of either saying something suggestive, saying something biting, or shoving him against a wall and biting him when there was a knock on the door.

"Sorry to disturb you, Master Katara, but Master Sokka requires your assistance," came a voice from the hall.

The waterbender looked at Zuko, than the door, than Zuko again.

"Tell him I'll be there in a moment," she finally called, reluctantly. After hearing the shuffle of footsteps leaving she turned back to the prince.

"Duty calls," she sighed apologetically. He gave a jerky, somewhat stunned nod and followed her out of the suite and into the hall. Once out the door and seeing that no one else was around the girl rounded on him, forcing him to back up a step until his back was against the door.

With one hand resting lightly on his shoulder – he was even broader and taller now at twenty than he had been at seventeen – Katara lifted up on her toes and put her mouth by his ear – _spirits, she could smell his shampoo_.

"We'll finish this conversation later." She let her hand slide lightly down his arm as she stepped back. To her pleasure a deep blush colored his cheeks and his Adam's apple bobbed with a swallow as he nodded.

Katara wasn't nearly as innocent as she had been the last time they met and she had come to a decision.

She was definitely going to fuck Prince Zuko before the month was over.

iv.

Her plan was proceeding nicely.

Well, she didn't really have a plan, she was more playing it by ear. Katara was however fairly confident that things were moving in a favorable direction.

_Mmm, yes, _she thought as she tilted back her head to encourage Zuko's lips on their path down her jaw and to her neck, _this is the perfect direction._

She had gone to his rooms after dinner, knowing that his cousin had an engagement with the eccentric king of Omashu and the almost as eccentric Avatar, with the intention of apologizing for her earlier behavior (and that's it, really).

"I can just get a little…"

"Passionate?"

"Yes, if you're being nice."

"I'd like to stay on your good side."

He then invited her into the receiving room for a drink.

They sat on a lounge and talked, and flirted. Well, she flirted; the prince mostly embarrassed himself in trying, but Katara still felt a flutter in her chest – the heat would come a little later.

Zuko was really surprisingly amorous once she got him started – though the wine probably helped. He had been saying something about his mother and sister – that was one thing she liked about him, not how she liked his arms and abs and finely cut cheekbones, but_really_ liked. She liked how loyal he was and how much he cared for his family, she liked how seriously he took concepts like duty and honor, she liked him. A lot.

It was a little overwhelming.

He had been saying how his sister was a handful and how his mother felt guilty for their not being closer, and she told him about the time when Sokka was five and he had emptied out the linen chest and hidden in it for more than a day with a supply of seal jerky because he though their mom was going to sell him to the traders that were at port (both her parents had known he was in their the entire time).

Zuko laughed and Katara felt something buzzing in her veins urge her to lean closer to him. She gave him a moment, when their faces were a breath apart, to pull back if he wanted, but instead, surprisingly given his reticent nature (though less surprising given the wine), he eagerly closed the distance.

It had taken some little encouragement on her part to move him beyond the strictly chaste – a nip at his lips, a hand on his thigh – but they were now hurdling down the metaphorical mail shoot from making out towards full on grinding and Katara wasn't looking back.

His lips and tongue and hands were endearingly clumsy, but he was catching on quickly enough that she found herself wondering in only the vaguest way how much experience he had before the thought was banished from her mind by the feel of his teeth scraping again her pulse.

Throwing one leg across his lap she tugged his head back by his hair so she could meet his lips again.

"Katara," he sighed into her mouth as one arm tightened around her back and the other gripped her hip.

The waterbender hummed into his mouth and guided him backwards until his head hit the arm of the sofa. Her left hand drifted from it's perch on his shoulder, down his chest and over his stomach towards the hem of his tunic.

But before she could reach her goal the door burst open and the man beneath her practically tumbled onto the floor.

"Zuko! Have you really been locked up alone in here sulking all evening when you could be chatting up that little water… tribe…" Lu Ten trailed off when he saw what he had walked in on.

"Excuse me," he coughed, a knowing smirk spreading across his face. "I didn't mean to interrupt."

The younger prince's entire face went a shade of crimson to rival his shirt (which she had be _so close_ to getting off him) as he fumbled to straighten his clothes.

Katara, meanwhile, smoothed down her own hair and clothing with considerably more grace.

"I should be going now, anyway, it's getting late." She stood up to leave, but not before taking one of Zuko's hands and adding with a smile, "It was lovely talking with you, Prince Zuko, we should do it again soon."

She gave his hand a light squeeze before walking out the door, giving a courteous nod to Lu Ten as she passed by.

"So tell me, Zuko, did you have a _lovely_ time _talking_, too?" she heard through the door once out in the hallway. This was followed by a strangled sounding groan and thump like a pillow hitting the wall.

v.

It was the fifth day of the final week of the Counsel of Nations and Katara still hadn't gotten into Zuko's pants. They'd spent a lot of time together, almost any moment they had free, both talking and kissing and, one memorable evening when they sneaked out of stuffy formal dinner early, dry humping in a bathroom.

She was falling hard for him, and he had told her in a particularly sweet moment after kissing her in one of the palace gardens that he was falling for her as well. In the beginning her fantasies about him had involved a lot of tearing of clothes and shoving against walls and an act that could best be described as fucking. More recently, however, she'd started dreaming of slow sweet kisses and gentle strokes and whispered declarations of love.

But screwing or making love or doing the sideways tango, whatever it was you wanted to call it, they still hadn't done it.

They were in Ba Sing Se on official business and were often constrained by time or circumstances or brothers who couldn't take a hint, but every time they did get close, every time she managed to get into his bedroom or lure him into hers he would grow shy or seemed reluctant. She worried that he might not be attracted to her, but he responded to her touches more than favorably and she had felt him hard against her thigh often enough that that seemed unlikely.

She was getting desperate.

Desperate enough for her to grab him the moment he'd open his door and plant a hot, hard kiss on his stupid, wonderful mouth before releasing his lip and panting out:

"Zuko, I want to have sex with you."

Her statement hung in the air between them like a trail of spit. Zuko looked dazed for a long moment.

"Oh," he said at last.

"Oh?" Katara repeated. She stared at him expectantly with wide eyes, brows creased and mouth pursed.

"So," she went on when it became evident he wouldn't. "Do you?"

"Do… I…?"

The waterbender resisted the urge to shake him, instead closing her eyes and taking in a large, calming breath.

"Do you want to have sex with me?"

"Oh!"

Zuko swallowed and cleared his throat before he decided to back up to sit on the sofa, awkwardly drawing her with him.

"Katara, I-"

"I don't want to push you into something you don't want," she said quickly. "I just… I really like you, and I really want to, and I need to know where you are in all this before I lose my mind."

He seemed to relax little.

"I really like you, too, Katara – I've never liked someone, like this, as much as I like you."

She nodded, and waited for him to continue.

"I'm just… I've never…"

She could feel his pulse speed up at his wrist where one of her fingers lay as she held his hand in hers.

"I've never done… um, the… sex before."

It didn't come as much of a surprise as it would have a month ago, or had she not known him, off and on, since he was ten. He was gorgeous, and rich, and gorgeous, and he could have women lining up for him, but he was also hard to get close to and slow to warm up.

There probably weren't a lot of girls with the kind of determination Katara had.

She smiled warmly and squeezed his hand.

"I do want to," he continued once he saw that she wasn't going to react negatively to his admission. "With you." He cupped her cheek with his free hand and Katara took the cue to lean forward and kiss him, a soft, and chaste. When she drew back she rested her forehead against his.

"But not yet?" she breathed.

He nodded

"Not yet."

Katara put her arms around his neck and climbed onto his lap so she was straddling him.

"I can respect that," she said seriously, before kissing him, long and deep, and Katara was fairly certain she was at least half in love him.

vi

Six months later Katara was absolutely completely one hundred percent positive that she was head over heals in love with him.

"So?" he asked, almost shyly. Katara had to smile.

"So….? she mimicked innocently as she stretched, not caring in the slightest when the sheets slid down to reveal her bare breasts.

Zuko huffed and pulled her to him by the waist and buried his face in her hair.

"How was the test drive?" he expanded, his words muffled but still distinguishable.

She hummed and bent her head to kiss his shoulder, a shoulder she'd mapped with her palm and fingers and lips and tongue many times during her visits to the Fire Nation and the prince's visits to the South Pole over the past few months. She'd just arrived that morning (special invitation of the Fire Lord to discuss "evolving diplomatic relations") and after her welcome meal Zuko had taken her to the gardens and presented to her a set of combs. Katara insisted that before she agreed to anything she'd need to try out what she was buying first – Zuko was happy to comply.

He was well acquainted with her body by now, where she liked to be touch and how, knowledge acquired over many heavy petting sessions that end with them both out of breath and slightly sticky on more than one occasion, but he was nervous, at turns timid and over eager. He pressed too lightly here and too hard there, and Katara finally had to tell him to lie back so she could take over.

It was everything she could have hoped for.

"I think I can make do with you," she murmured as she kissed his ear.

Zuko pulled his head back and looked up at her through the hair hanging in his eyes.

"Does that mean you'll marry me?"

Katara kissed him, forcing his mouth open with her tongue so she could taste him before pulling back and answering.

"Of course I will."

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Thank you for reading, and if you enjoyed it please consider reviewing!


	2. Chapter 2

_a/n: still _not as cracky as intended, but oh well.

I don't know what you would call these two stories since they exist in different universes, they aren't really companion pieces, just came from the same basic idea.

Prompt siblings? oh well.

Cross posted on my tumblr.

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_The Five Times Katara Really Wanted to Bone Zuko and the Time She Totally Did_

i.

The first time Katara wanted Zuko was also, coincidentally, the first time she saw him shirtless.

She should have know that he was…built – even in the caves without his armor it was obvious that he had notably broad shoulders for a sixteen year old, and she'd felt the strength behind his grip during the pirate incident. You also didn't get to be that advanced of a firebender or swordsman without some serious physical training.

But to actually see those muscles uncloaked, pale skin rippling in the sunlight with every powerful punch, sweat trickling down his neck and between his shoulder blades, chasing one after the other down down until they reach his…

The waterbender abruptly stood up and swiftly turned to go back into the air temple.

"Katara!" Aang called towards her retreating back. "I thought you wanted to watch me train to make sure Zuko didn't try to set me on fire. Where are you going?"

She didn't look back when she squeaked out her response -

"To go wash something!"

ii.

The second time Katara wanted Zuko was the first time they sparred as friends.

Toph had Aang for earthbending training for the afternoon and the older two benders were both were feeling antsy and the moon was out early, sharing the sky with the evening sun, so why not?

He was of course shirtless again, but Katara had gotten better at ignoring his (glorious… chiseled… lickable…) physique and her focus was entirely on bending and not at all on his pecs,_really._

At least it was until she knocked him clean off his feet and onto his back and thought it would be cute to rub her victory in by sitting on him, one knee on either side.

"Ha," she said smugly, bottom on his lower stomach just above above his… _ahem…_and hands pinning his wrists beside his head. She could smell his sweat, and unlike with Sokka or Aang or Toph the scent didn't make her want to hold her nose and demand he take a bath.

His eyes narrowed dangerously. Of course, in this position anything he did would seem dangerous.

"Looks like you're doing the dishes tonight, she said. She tried her best to keep her voice from trembling, taking in steady, even breaths in an attempt to calm her pulse which was no longer racing due to physical exertion.

Suddenly Zuko was maneuvering out from under her, using his strength and her distraction to his advantage. They scrambled for a few moments, sweaty skin rubbing against sweaty skin – at one point her mouth knocked against his shoulder and she felt her teeth scrape his skin – but all too soon Zuko had her firmly pinned beneath him.

"How about we split the dishes?" he suggested, every bit as smug as she had been moments before.

Not knowing how much longer she could take being in this position with him without spontaneously combusting, Katara quickly nodded.

A cool, whoosh of air chased into her lungs when he lifted off of her and she thrummed with relief and a little disappointment. She then took the hand he offered and allowed him to pull her up. He didn't let go right away once she was standing, but stood there staring at their hands for a moment before letting go, blushing and muttering and apology as he hurried off.

iii.

The third time Katara wanted Zuko was the first time she healed him following the Agni Kai with Azula.

She had helped him into the palace and to his old bedroom, and she was sitting on the side of his bed with a basin of water to see if there was anything more she could do at the moment now that the more pressing issue of whether or not he would survive was settled.

Without that worry tearing at her heart, or the screams of his sister echoing in the background, it was all very… intimate. Sure, she had healed Aang before in a similar situation, but Aang was twelve – he hadn't even gone through puberty yet.

Zuko, on the other hand, was seventeen, and, well, had. And, she was forcibly reminded by the heat rushing to her lower regions for what felt like the hundredth time since the stupid sexy firebender joined their group, so had she.

_Concentrate, Katara, you're not here to ogle him!_

"Did you say something?"

"No!" she yelped, almost dropping the water. "I mean, no, I didn't say anything. Just, stay still while I check out your body – I mean chest! I mean… chest…. region… where you were injured." She wanted to slide off the bed and into a hole in the floor, but instead pulled herself together and tried again.

"I have to examine your injury, for healing, and stuff."

Kindly, Zuko said nothing. His eyes were closed and his brow slightly knit as Katara did what she could to speed the healing process and ease the pain.

"There will be scarring," she said at length. "And I – or, another healer – will need to work with you for the next few months, but you should be able to make a full recovery, so long as you take it easy for a while."

She trailed water-coated fingertips around the edges of the wound."Your heart took a lot a damage."

She nearly dropped her water again when one of his hands came to her wrist. Her eyes met his and she noted their intensity before she let the water flow back into the basin.

"I think I've done all I can for right now," she said, setting the water aside on the end table and taking his hand in both of hers – his fingers were hot, so hot she thought they might have left burn marks where they touched on her wrist. At least it felt like she was branded.

"I'm tired," he rasped, and he looked it.

"I'm not surprised, your body's expending a lot of energy, trying to heal itself. You should try to sleep."

She started to reach for the basin, intending to bring it back to the bathroom and then maybe trying to rest a little on the settee by the window, but Zuko's fingers were again wrapped around her wrist.

"No," he said, his voice not nearly as strong as his grip,and before Katara could wonder what exactly he was saying no to his other hand was tugging insistently at her shirt sleeve as if trying to pull her down next to him.

She acquiesced, laying her head on the pillow right next to his and bringing her legs up onto the bed, shoes and all. The prince tried to adjust his position to accommodate her better,but he groaned from the pain and she stilled him with on hand on his shoulder. He took her hand and tangled his fingers with hers, resting them on his stomach and turning his head towards her so they were nose to nose and were so close her eyes couldn't focus without going cross eyed but she could feel his breath mingling with hers.

Katara felt lightheaded, delirious and too hot and too cold at the same time. She didn't know what she was doing until she was already doing it and that's how she found herself with her lips pressed to Zuko's, head awkwardly tilted into the pillows and the side of nose flush against the side of his. Her toes twitched and her ears tingled and she wanted to keep going forever because everything felt so much more real than it ever had before.

But then Zuko tried to shift so he could take her in his arms, which caused him to let out a sharp groan of pain and forced him to break their kiss.

"Oh no, did I hurt you?" Katara rushed, starting to sit up, but again Zuko's fingers on her wrist stilled her.

"It's okay." His smile was soft and his eyes apologetic. "Please, stay."

And she did, settling back down and molding her body against his side and weaving their fingers together again. He kissed her, a chaste sweet peck, and fell asleep with his nose brushing hers.

She stayed awake, keeping watch and trying to ignore the flames roaring inside.

iv.

The fourth time Katara wanted Zuko was the first time she saw him wearing the crown of the Fire Lord.

She stood down in the crowd with Sokka, Toph, and Suki, beaming with pride at her boys. She was struck by how much older Aang looked – not so much physically, though he had shot up several inches from the time he first tumbled out of the iceberg and into her arms nearly a year ago, but in the way he held himself, in his eyes. Something had happened, he had gone over some great change, though when she spoke to him all he'd said was something about a talking lion-turtle and not being ready to settle down anyway. None of it made much sense. She would have to sit him down to get the rest of the story out of him some time.

But that would have to wait, because right now there was a more pressing conversation she needed to have.

"What is it you wanted to talk about?" Zuko asked as she lead him into a side room away from the main hall where over a hundred of their closest friends were gathered to celebrate his coronation.

She answered by shoving him (carefully, mindful of his still tender chest) against the door and pressing her lips hard against his. He immediately returned the kiss, one arm going around her waist and the other combing into the hair at the back of her neck.

"I just wanted to let you know that this look suits you," she said when they parted, brushing her hands down the front of his robes.

"Oh?" he responded, blushing and smirking in equal parts.

"Mmhmm." The waterbender couldn't bring herself to be ashamed of the way she pressed her pelvis against his, and as good as he looked in those robes she desperately wanted to get him out of them. But, his injury was still fresh, and even if it wasn't they would be missed soon if they didn't get back to the party.

He evidently was having similar thoughts because he sighed sadly and brushed a kiss against her ear.

"I wish I could just hide in here all night with you."

"Maybe next time," she teased.

"Promise?" He looked so hopeful she almost laughed.

"Only if you promise to take care of yourself and work on your physical therapy," she said seriously.

He kissed her again, nipping at her lips.

"Deal."

He had no idea what he was getting himself into.

v.

The fifth time Katara wanted Zuko was the first time she got him naked.

It was four months after the coronation and the end of the war in Ba Sing Se.

Katara and Sokka had been spending time in the South Pole with their family, helping with the rebuilding; Toph with parents, reconciling, sort of; Aang traveling to various locales spreading the word of the end of the war and a return to peace; and Suki to Kyoshi Island with Ty Lee and the rest of the warriors (word was that Mai had been taken on by Jun as an apprentice and was currently hunting down wanted war criminals in the Earth Kingdom). Meanwhile Zuko was of course in the Fire Nation swamped by the new responsibilities thrust on him.

This was the first time they'd managed to all get together at once since then, and it was the first time Katara had seen Zuko at all. His physical therapy was going well and a quick look over proved that his condition was greatly improved.

"We did have a deal," she said in response to his bewildered look when she swung one leg over his lap and sat firmly on top his pelvis as he lay propped up by pillows on the bed.

"I guess we did," he responded breathlessly. He eagerly met her in an open mouthed kiss but was pushed back down by the girl on top him. Katara had been dreaming about him for months and she'd be damned if she wasted one more minute now that they were both together and physically able. Zuko apparently had been having similar dreams, judging by the hungry way he licked at her lips and the almost pitiful moan he let out when she started to grind her hips against his.

Katara pulled away and with quick, efficient movements undid the tie to her robes and removed them so she was left in only her Earth Kingdom style under wraps, designed more for comfort and ease of access than warmth unlike the ones she was used to wearing. Zuko took in a huge breath of air, eyes wide and hands gliding up and down over and over her newly exposed sides.

"Katara, I… wow…" he managed to get out before the girl swooped down to capture his lips again while her own hands explored his arms and bare chest. She rolled her hips against him and was answered by a sharp buck. Encouraged, and impatient, Katara started kissing down his neck, his chest, the scarred-over skin where he had taken lightning for her.

"What are you doing?" she heard the firebender ask breathlessly, the words reverberating under her lips in his chest.

"Do you want me to stop?" she asked, looking up to meet his eyes. Zuko quickly shook his head, his hair flopping back and forth with the force of the motion. She smiled in relief and refocused on the bulge tenting his pants. She fingered his waste band, a flicker of nervousness bubbling up somewhere inside, before taking in a deep breath like she was about to dive into a body of water and yanking down both his trousers and underthings together all at once.

It was funny that in her dreams she had never quite imagined what it would look like, just how it would feel.

She quickly pulled his pants off the rest of the way and crawled back up to him, undoing the ties of her upper wraps and letting them fall to the side as her lips again met his. Zuko wrapped his arms around her, hands sprawled against her bare back. They parted for a moment and she watched his gaze move down to her chest, his fingers digging hard into her skin before he dragged his eyes back up to hers.

He looked just as nervous and excited as she felt, and though a small part of her wanted to stop and hide and gather herself for a moment, a much bigger part was shouting "fuck no, keep going!" in such a convincing tone that she was glad to comply.

So with one hand she took one of Zuko's to place it on her breast and with the other she reached down to firmly grab hold of his dick and just as he squeezed so did she, her thumb brushing clumsily against the head and it was apparently all too much too quickly for the poor Fire Lord because before she knew what was happening the nails of the hand still on her back were biting into her skin and his face was buried against her neck and sounds were coming out of his mouth like he had been punched in the gut.

And then she felt drops of something warm on her hand and she knew that it was over.

vi

The sixth time Katara wanted Zuko was the time she finally got him.

It was also the first time he said 'I love you'.

Following their first foray into mutual states of partial to complete undress Zuko had been so embarrassed he could barely look her in the eyes. Katara however had assured him repeatedly that it was okay, she wasn't upset, and that she shouldn't have tried to rush things like she did.

"You're just so beautiful," he said, almost sadly, once they were both dressed again. Katara hadn't known how to respond to that, so she kissed him, long and soft and full of something she wasn't ready to name, and then told him that they would try again when they were both ready.

It turned out that 'when' was one month later when Katara arrived at the Fire Nation palace, there at Zuko's request for an unspecified length of time as an unofficial adviser (and at Uncle Iroh's request to make sure Zuko didn't overwork himself and had someone he trusted completely to confide in).

She arrived in the late afternoon and by the time she was settled into her rooms it was time for supper, which, a helpful servant informed, she was invited to take with the Fire Lord in his private rooms (it would take a while to get used to the reverence Sifu Hotman was treated with around here).

Having an inkling of what he had in mind (or at least a desperate, fervent hope), Katara took a moment to quickly freshen up before allowing the servant to lead her to Zuko's quarters.

If it wasn't for the hunger gnawing at her Katara would have gladly skipped the food altogether. However, the moment the last dish was taken away and they were left alone for presumably the remainder of the evening, Katara slid off the pillow she sat on to make for Zuko and almost squealed with delight when he pulled her into his lap with a surprising degree of smoothness.

"Missed me?" she teased, already peppering kisses down his neck. He laughed, and said, yes, he did, very much.

He was hugging her close and she could feel his heart beat begin to jump wildly.

"I wanted to tell you something," he said, placing a kiss on her hairline.

"I've thought about it a lot. About you, and us, and how I -" he cut himself off and took in a deep breath. "How I feel about you."

Katara pulled back a little so she could see his face properly. He looked nervous, his eyes flickering back and forth across her face. He looked worshipful, as if he couldn't believe she was real.

When he spoke it came out as little more than a whisper, but it was full of such sincerity and the affect it had on her was immediate and intense.

"Oh, Zuko," she sighed, and then kissed him with everything she had, her tongue demanding he open his mouth and her fingers tangled in his hair. She wanted him, this boy, more now than when she watched him train shirtless, more than when they sparred, more than when she felt his breath against her face, more than when she watched him before his people, proud and regal and noble, she wanted him now, when he said those words and looked at her with that emotion.

"Please, please, please tell me that means you're ready, please," she said between kisses rained down on both his cheeks, on his scar and off.

"Yes," he choked out. "As long as you are."

Katara shot out of his lap and held out a hand to help him up.

"Of course I am!"

"Okay," he said, taking her hand and letting her help pull him up to a standing position. He just stood there for a moment, looking at her as if she was a some kind of puzzle, and then all at once he was sweeping her off her feet so she was cradled in his arms and he was marching with her towards the bed.

The seventh time she wanted him came shortly after the sixth and was accompanied by the first time she said 'I love you' in return. It was also accompanied by the second time she had him, and after that she lost count.

She was just really happy he was finally hers.


End file.
